Loom harness



July 18,1939.

J. J. KAUFMANN 2,166,895

LOOM HARNESS Filed April 21, 1937 V Jitornej.

Patented July 18, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE LOOM HARNESSApplication April 21, 1937, Serial No. 138,072

4 Claims.

This invention relates to loom harness and relates more particularly tothe flat steel heddles which are used for controlling the individualwarp ends, to separate the same into sheds between which a shuttlepasses to effect the weaving.

One of the principal difliculties which has arisen in the use of steelheddles in loom harness, particularly in those mills in which theatmosphere in the weaving room is maintained at a high degree ofhumidity, is that the heddles will rust and corrode above and below theshed lines. In some instances this rusting and corrosion will be of suchextent as to cause the heddles to break at the shanks of the mortisesprovided in the heddles for mounting the heddles on the supporting rodsof the frames.

It has been. customary in the making of loom harness in which flat steelheddles are used, to 20 coat the heddles With a thin surface layer ofnickel which, to a certain extent, serves as a rust retardant. Thiscustomary coating of nickel, however, is provided for another anddifferent purpose, namely, to reduce the friction of 25 the warp endsagainst the faces of the heddle as the sheds are formed.

It has been found that if the nickel coating be of such thickness as toserve effectively as a rust preventative, the same is apt to crack and30 peel with the obviously resultant disadvantages. On the other hand ifthe softer metals, such as zinc or cadmium are used to coat the heddlesthroughout their length, the friction of the warp in the harness will begreatly increased, and also 35 it will be found that dark streaks willoccur in the cloth whenever the loom is left standing during the periodsof cessation of weaving.

With the foregoing in mind, the present invention contemplates theprovision of a novel 40 form of flat steel heddle in the use of whichease of manipulation and absence of friction are obtainable, while onthe other hand, the rusting and corrosion of the heddles above and belowthe shed lines are effectively prevented.

45 The nature and characteristic features of the invention will be morereadily understood from the following description, taken in connectionwith the accompanying drawing forming part hereof, in which:

50 Figure 1 is a front elevation of a standard form of loom harnessframe having mounted therein heddles embodying the main features of thepresent invention;

Fig. 2 is a face view of one of the heddles de- 5 tached, and enlargedwith respect to Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is 'a transverse section of one of the heddles, greatly enlarged,the section being taken on the line 33 of Fig. 2; and

Fig. 4 is a similar view, the section being taken on the line 44 of Fig.2. 5

Referring to the drawing, there is shown in Fig. 1 a heddle frame ofordinary construction comprising top and bottom rails I 0 and sidestruts II. The side struts H serve to support the heddle rods l2 uponwhich the heddles I3 10 are mounted.

The heddles l3 comprise thin flat strips of steel provided centrallywith warp eyes l4, and at each end with mortises l5 for mounting theheddles on the supporting rods It. The warp eyes l4 and mortises l5 arepreferably formed as in the usual and customary types of flat steelheddles, and may be of any preferred style or configuration.

In the manufacture of the heddles, after the warp eye and mortises areformed and brought to the desired shape and suitably smoothed, theentire length of the heddle is given a thin coating or plating [B of arelatively hard metal such as nickel which is capable of taking a highpolish. This coating 16 of nickel, or the like, must, however, berelatively thin, as otherwise when the loom harness is subjected to theshocks and rough usage incidental to the weaving operations, the coatingwill crack and peel at various places, resulting in an undesiredroughness, incidental sharp edges, and an exposure of the steel body ofthe heddle to the full efiect of any dampness which may be present inthe atmosphere.

After the heddles are coated in their entirety, as aforesaid, they arethen given a coating I! of a soft metal, such as zinc or cadmium, atthose portions at each end thereof, which are respectively disposedabove and below the shed lines of the warp. This coating I! has asufficient thickness and density as effectively to serve to prevent anydampness which may be in the surrounding atmosphere from affecting thebody portion of the heddle under said coating, and being of a softductile character, the same will readily withstand the shocks and roughusage to which the heddles are subjected.

In the use of the heddles in the loom, the raising and lowering of theharnesses in which the heddles are mounted, with the resultant rubbingof the warp on the side faces of the central portions of the heddles,will effectively serve to maintain such central portions in a polishedcondition free from rust.

It may be found preferable to extend the coating ll of the soft metal atthe end portions to a point slightly within the shed lines, although, ifthis be done it will be incumbent upon the operator of the loom,whenever the same is brought to a stop, to make sure that the respectiveharness frames are brought to such relative positions that the warp willbe left in such positions, while the looms stand idle, as to avoidcontact of the warp with the soft metal coating at the ends of theheddles, which otherwise might discolor the same through chemical orother action.

I claim:

1. In a loom harness, a plurality of heddles made of thin flat steeleach entirely enclosed within a relatively thin coating of hard metaladapted to take a relatively high polish, and also having each endportion above and below the shed lines enclosed within a heavier rustpreventative coating of soft ductile metal superposed over the thin hardmetal coating.

2. In a loom harness, a plurality of heddles made of thin flat steeleach entirely enclosed within a relatively thin coating of hard metalsuch as nickel adapted to take a relatively high polish, and also havingeach end portion enclosed within a heavier rust preventative coating ofsoft ductile metal such as zinc or cadmium.

3. In a loom harness, a plurality of heddles made of thin flat steeleach entirely enclosed within a relatively thin coating of hard metalsuch as nickel adapted to take a relatively high polish, and also havingeach end portion above and below the shed lines enclosed within aheavier rust preventative coating of soft ductile metal such as zinc orcadmium superposed over the thin hard metal coating.

4. In a loom harness, a plurality of heddles made of thin fiat steeleach entirely enclosed within a relatively thin coating of hard metaladapted to take a relatively high polish, and also having each endportion entirely enclosed within a heavier rust preventative coating ofsoft ductile metal.

JOHN JACOB KAUFMANN.

